Class Portfolio
| A Work | B Work | C Work |
-Misses one class or less, or completes make-up work for excused absences -Annotates all readings thoroughly -Makes substantive comments in discussions -Completes all assignments on time (or has an approved extension request) -Work demonstrates intellectual engagement, care, effort, and growth in response to feedback -Collaborates substantially, contributes to vision, works equally with peers | -Misses two classes or less, or completes make-up work for excused absences -Annotates readings -Often participates in discussion -Completes all major assignments on time (or has an approved extension request) -Completes most SAs on time -Work demonstrates care, effort and growth in response to feedback -Collaborates equally, completes required work | -Misses three classes or less, or completes make-up work for excused absences -Completes most readings -Sometimes adds to discussion -Completes all major assignments on time (or has an approved extension request) -Completes at least four SAs -Meets minimal expectations on assignments; shows limited growth in response to feedback -Completes required collaborative work |
First-Week Introduction
The reason why I chose my five goals is because they are something I want to contiune to work on. I also believe that the assignments I will have to complete this semester will be heavily focused on those skills. The assignment that makes me most excited for the semester is the data collection, where I will be conducting interviews, because I have come to enjoy interviews as well as being able to step into the mind of the individual and see where they’re coming from. The assignment that seems like it will be the most challenging is the previous assignment, data collection, because you never know if you’ll get enough people to participate, and this can make or break your process. The strategies I want to set for myself to make the semester a success is to not procrastinate, ask for help when I need it, and to fully apply myself to each and every assignment. This will allow me to set myself up for success and lead to this semester going great.
Midterm Introduction
During the first half of the semester I experienced a lot of ups and downs. What I enjoyed the most was being able to be in class because although it was trying, it was also pretty fun and exciting. What I struggled the most with was staying on track with getting everything done during the time frame. It was sometimes hard because somethings ended up being harder and taking more time to get through. At the moment I would say that I want to continue developing all of my goals during the second half of the semester. I say this because all of the evidence needed to showcase I have excelled at my goals have to do with my interviews. I’m still in the process of wrapping them up and organizing all of my data into reports. So, it’s hard to tell how I am doing regarding these goals. However, I do believe that I can continue on to accomplish my goals because of the effort I have put forth for my research.
Final Introduction
[Now that the semester is over, use your introduction to reflect in-depth on your process. How well did you meet the goals you set out to meet? What did you learn that surprised you? Focusing on your goals for this class, what do you want to remember to take with you into your future courses? What strategies can you use to continue developing toward these goals?]
Course Goals
Choose five goals from the CODES Student Learning Outcomes that you’d like to work toward. Choose goals that are relevant to the scope of this course, select artifacts/examples based on activities assigned for this course, and explain characteristics in a way that illustrates how your artifacts/examples demonstrate your progress toward the goal.
Goal 1 (10%)
Based on 1a. Demonstrates ability and commitment to collaboratively work across and within community contexts and structures: Demostrates ability to efficiently collaborate with community partner and research group.
| What will you do to learn the content/ develop the skill? | What examples will you add to the portfolio to demonstrate your learning? | What characteristics of the chosen examples demonstrate you have met your goal? |
| – I will practice contributing my ideas in the group – I will practice presenting my ideas to HeartLands – I will practice writing out my small presentation beforehand | – Working with team – Working with HeartLands | – My ideas being known in the group – HeartLands fully understanding my ideas |
[For each 5% of effort you assign to your goal, provide at at least one example or artifact that demonstrates your learning process and shows how your made progress toward meeting that goal this semester (You would need four examples if the goal was worth 20% of your grade). Show how you have improved over time, what methods you took to grow, and talk about what you still plan to do in the future. ]
Goal 2 (15%)
Based on 4a. Adapts and applies a deep understanding of multiple worldviews, experiences, and power structures while initiating meaningful interaction with other cultures to address significant global problems: Applies a deep understanding of multiple worldviews, experiences, and power structures while initiating meaningful interaction with other cultures to address significant global problems.
| What will you do to learn the content/ develop the skill? | What examples will you add to the portfolio to demonstrate your learning? | What characteristics of the chosen examples demonstrate you have met your goal? |
| – I will do research to get a better understanding of different cultures and their views on nature – I will make sure my interview questions are diverse and inclusive – I will conduct my interviews in an inclusive manner | – Outside research – Interview Questions – Interviews | – My interviews would be inclusive because my questions would be diverse, and this would all happen because I did outside research to get a better understanding |
Outside Research:
https://www.siue.edu/inrs/factbook/pdf/FbCurrent.pdf
I did outside research in order to get a better feel of the student population at SIUe from a quantitative perspective. So, I found the SIUe Fact Book: Institutional Research and Studies. It was the 2025 edition, so when I looked at the section that had data all about the students, I was able to see numbers all the way up to 2024. I used this Fact Book to see what the make up of the student body looked like. This outside research helped me to improve because it allowed me to see the level of diversity in the school and take that into account when curating my questions.
[For each 5% of effort you assign to your goal, provide at at least one example or artifact that demonstrates your learning process and shows how your made progress toward meeting that goal this semester (You would need four examples if the goal was worth 20% of your grade). Show how you have improved over time, what methods you took to grow, and talk about what you still plan to do in the future. ]
Goal 3 (25%)
Based on 7b. Pursues knowledge and educational experience beyond the classroom: Pursues knowledge and educational experience beyond the classroom.
| What will you do to learn the content/ develop the skill? | What examples will you add to the portfolio to demonstrate your learning? | What characteristics of the chosen examples demonstrate you have met your goal? |
| – I will do research to get a better understanding of different cultures and their views on nature – I will attend site visits to get a first-hand view and take notes on what I see – I will conduct interviews outside of class that will bring me more data | – Site visits – Interviews – Outside research | – I would have a multitude of data that is based outside of the class and contributes to my research |
[For each 5% of effort you assign to your goal, provide at at least one example or artifact that demonstrates your learning process and shows how your made progress toward meeting that goal this semester (You would need four examples if the goal was worth 20% of your grade). Show how you have improved over time, what methods you took to grow, and talk about what you still plan to do in the future. ]
Goal 4 (40%)
Based on 8a. Uses clear organizational patterns and is skillful at presenting content cohesively: Uses clear organizational patterns and is skillful at presenting content cohesively.
| What will you do to learn the content/ develop the skill? | What examples will you add to the portfolio to demonstrate your learning? | What characteristics of the chosen examples demonstrate you have met your goal? |
| – I will practice making my interview questions direct and open-ended – I will practice giving interviews and having improv follow-up questions to dig deeper – I will present my interview reports and final presentation cohesively | – Interview Questions – Interviews – Interview Reports – Final Presentation | – My interview process and final presentation will be organized, cohesive, and have qualitative data that digs deeper. |
Interview Questions:
- Do you believe that people our age are interested in conservation? Why or why not?
- Do you believe more people should get involved in conservation? Why or why not?
- Have you known about or participated in any events, club activities, etc. that have promoted conservation?
- Do you know of any environmental clubs on campus?(Geography, Environmental Careers, Wildlife & Conservation Biology, Biology)
- Follow-up: Would these clubs be something you’re interested in?
- Follow-up: Have these clubs done anything to grab your attention?
- Do you believe there is a disconnect between these events and young adults, or that these events aren’t being publicized enough?
- Follow-up: If you could change anything about what they do, what would you change
- If you had unlimited resources, what would you do to get more people our age involved in conservation?
- Follow-up: What if you only had limited resources?
- Would you be interested in learning more about organizations that help with nature and conservation?
The reason why these interview questions demonstrates my learning process for this goal is because it showcases how I organized my questions to help my interviews flow. The questions coupled with the follow up responses helped me to dig deeper into the answers that the participants gave me.
[For each 5% of effort you assign to your goal, provide at at least one example or artifact that demonstrates your learning process and shows how your made progress toward meeting that goal this semester (You would need four examples if the goal was worth 20% of your grade). Show how you have improved over time, what methods you took to grow, and talk about what you still plan to do in the future. ]
Goal 5 (10%)
Based on 11c. Reads using an appropriate lens and can engage in a continuing dialogue within and beyond a discipline or a community of readers: Reads using an appropriate lens and can engage in a continuing dialogue withing and beyond a discipline or a community of readers.
| What will you do to learn the content/ develop the skill? | What examples will you add to the portfolio to demonstrate your learning? | What characteristics of the chosen examples demonstrate you have met your goal? |
| – I will use my interview transcripts to bear a fruitful report that has very strong themes and conclusions – I will use my interview report to showcase my aptitude to read deeper than the sentence shown. | – Interview Transcripts – Interview Reports | – My interview reports would be very thorough and include a deeper dive into the meanings of my results |
[For each 5% of effort you assign to your goal, provide at at least one example or artifact that demonstrates your learning process and shows how your made progress toward meeting that goal this semester (You would need four examples if the goal was worth 20% of your grade). Show how you have improved over time, what methods you took to grow, and talk about what you still plan to do in the future. ]